A Smile and A Kiss
by 2ns
Summary: Posting my entry for Kataang Week 2017 early (Smile prompt): Katara and Aang pose as bait to help Zuko capture some Dai Li agents, and they banter while fleeing. Predates the events in "My Heart in My Pocket" by a few years. Canon Kataang. Many thanks to TheBakingQueen for sending me to the prompts.


I own no part of Avatar: Fanfiction only.

A Smile and A Kiss

"Why is it," Katara panted, "that every time there's a trap," Aang grabbed her arm and jerked her to the side, ducking to avoid the boulder that had been hurled at them, "we always . . . _always_ end up being the bait!"

Aang ran as though it was effortless, propelled by the force of his own bending. Katara was struggling to keep up and avoid slipping on the loose stone and gravel that littered the floor of the Bone Plains. Looking back over his shoulder to see how closely they were followed, he tossed out, "Because it's fun!"

"It's . . . it's not fun. Woah!" Katara grabbed Aang's obi and pulled him behind one of the many towering rock structures that gave the Bone Plains their name just in time to avoid a jet of fire from his side. They tore off in a slightly different direction, still headed towards the edge of the canyon. "You tell Zuko . . ." Aang's hand shot out to steady her as her left foot rolled on a large stone and she nearly lost her footing. "He can deal with his next Dai Li problem . . . Oh!" They lept together over a fallen ironwood tree, but their feet sank into a tangle of briars that had rooted in the midst of the branches. Leaping out, she finished, "The next problem is all _his!"_

"We're almost there . . . bear left!" Aang could sense that Katara's endurance was nearly spent, so he grabbed her hand to tow her.

"Let go! You're going to make me-look out!" Katara's warning came just in time to prevent the slabs of stone hurled by the Dai Li on their right from taking off Aang's head.

The plan was to lead the Dai Li to the edge of the canyon where they would be ambused by Zuko's men lying in wait. They were nearly there, racing along the edge of an outcropping of stone. Being the more surefooted, Aang's feet pounded the stone only a finger's breadth away from the edge of the precipice, and Katara drew out every last ounce of strength she had left to keep up. Another jet of fire just missed them, leaving Katara's hair singed in its wake.

"Everyone we meet . . ." she lept down to a slanted slab and slid on rubble several feet to the edge, leaping to another outcropping, "throws rocks at us . . . _duck!_ " Aang slid lithely out of the way of a storm of gravel that had been slung their way. " . . . and wants to set us on fire!"

Aang leapt in front of Katara and slid into a low stance, bending away a wall of flame that had erupted in their path. Aang turned on his heel and beamed a dazzling smile through the soot and grime that was smeared across his face. "I blame _you_ , Katara!" Aang grabbed Katara's hand and pulled her deeper into the canyon, nearly to its throat where Zuko and blessed water were concealed.

"What!" Aang nearly laughed at her indignation.

Sliding the last few yards down the steep embankment and allowing the loose gravel to speed their slide, Aang craned his head over his shoulder to watch her progress as she slid down behind him. "It can't be me . . ." He counted the Dai Li agents scramble on the gravel twenty yards behind Katara . . . four, five, six, and two fire benders . . .

As soon as Aang's heel hit the bottom of the ravine, he quickly changed feet and spun a kick wide over his head that raised the entirety of the lazily flowing river into the air and sent it charging back up the embankment towards their pursuers. "It can't be me, Katara . . ." Aang continued.

Seeing the river raised, Katara reached out both hands, clasped her fists, and flung her hands back, springing the fingers apart. The wall of water turned into spears of ice, some as long as eight feet, that neatly caged the earth and fire benders into intertwined spikes of ice. One of the men cried out in pain. "Damn! I didn't mean to stab him!"

Katara slid to a stop next to Aang.

"It can't be me—I'm a really nice guy!" Clasping his hand gently behind Katara's neck, he pulled her in for a quick kiss. "But I'll try to schedule our next crisis somewhere where there's fewer people throwing rocks at you."

Aang turned at the sound of Zuko's men racing up the river bed towards the captured Dai Li.

"Six Dai Li and two rogue fire benders!" Aang called out. "Katara says they're your problem now, Zuko."

Aang whipped back to flash another brilliant smile at Katara, and just missed being snapped in the back by the tendril of water Katara had sent after him along with a disgruntled smirk. Laughing, he grabbed her around the waist and pulled her roughly back for a deeper kiss, and she giggled as they almost toppled unbalanced into the river bed amongst the fish flapping unhappily in the mud.

 _Damn him,_ she thought, _a smile and a kiss are all it takes, and suddenly nothing else ever matters!_


End file.
